“We do not remember days; we remember moments.” ~Cesare Pavese, The Burning Brand
First, and foremost, I wish you and yours a very healthy happy safe new year. I hope you enjoyed the festive holiday season. This is the time that we sit back, reflect and ask, where did the last year go? I am not sure if it is a sign of age, but as I get older, it appears each year goes much faster.
2014 had its share of memorable Prince George sports moments. Here are just a few of them that caught my attention:
Top story:
Hands down or shall I say hand it over. The Prince George Cougars ownership change. The WHL Board of Governors unanimously approved the sale of the Cougars from Rick Brodsky to EDGEPRO Sports and Entertainment Ltd., which is led by local businessman Greg Pocock. His partners are NHL defensemen Dan Hamhuis and Eric Brewer plus businessmen Ernest Ouellet, Raymond Fortier, and John Pateman. The price of the sale has been speculated at $7 million.
Runner-up:
The PG Golf and Curling Club was the site for the highly successful 2014 Scotties BC Women’s Curling Championship that featured a dramatic final. Nanaimo student Kesa Van Osch skipped her Victoria rink to the title by stealing the winning point in the 10th end for a 5-4 victory over 4-time defending champion Kelly Scott of Kelowna. Alison MacInnes of Abbotsford earned bronze, Patti Knezevic of Prince George finished 4th and Tracey Jones of P.G. placed 5th in the 10-team field. Knezevic then travelled as the 5th player for the Van Osch team to the National Scotties Women’s Curling Championship in Montreal. B.C finished tied for 5th with a 6-5 record. Knezevic competed in five of the 11 games due to the flu bug that sideline some of the curlers. They were 4-1 with her in the line-up.
Emotional moment:
The 100-day countdown to the 2015 Canada Winter Games. November 4th wasn’t just any spectacle, it was a mammoth celebration where many Prince George residents captured the moment. 37 torch bearers (myself included) took to the downtown streets and upon arrival to the Canada Games Plaza were greeted by hundreds and hundreds of enthusiastic supporters who captured the Spirit feeling a sense of pride, gratification and honor. The much anticipated Games are now just six weeks away.
Runner-up:
One week following the death of their teammate Nathan Warren, the Westwood Pub men’s soccer team beat Rolling Mix Concrete 2-1 to capture the North Cariboo Senior Soccer League Open Division championship. Warren died of a heart attack Sept 7th at age 26.
Excellent achievements:
To Russia with Love
Megan Heinicke competed in the women’s biathlon at the Sochi Olympics and helped Canada to an 8th place finish out of 17 in the women’s 4 by 6k relay. Earlier, Heinicke was 51st out of 82 in the 15k individual and 59th out of 84 in the 7.5k sprint.
National Gold:
Inner City fighter Kenny Lally won a 6th national boxing title in Mississauga, Ontario.
Alyx Treasure earned gold in the women’s high jump at the Canadian Track and Field Championships in Moncton, New Brunswick.
Sarah Beaudry racked up three individual gold and Caledonia Nordic Ski Club teammate Emily Dickson captured two individual gold at the National Biathlon Championships in Charlo, New Brunswick. Dickson also won gold at the Canadian Cross-Country Ski Championships in Cornerbrook, Newfoundland.
Perfection:
The Westwood Pub Devils won the Treasure Cove Provincial Senior C Lacrosse Championship. The Devils outscored the Port Moody Express 10-6 in the final before more than 300 fans at Kin 1. The Devils finished 24-0 on the season after going 5-0 in the five team tournament.
Looking to improve:
Naturally, not all results lived up to expectations, including the high profile teams:
The PG Cougars failed to make the playoffs again but had a 50-goal scorer in Todd Fiddler.
The PG Spruce Kings and Cariboo Cougars lost in the first round of the playoffs.
The UNBC Timberwolves did not make the Canada West playoffs after finishing 5-17 in men’s basketball, 6-16 in women’s basketball, 3-9 in men’s soccer and 1-9-2 in women’s soccer.
Another year:
Ups, downs, highs and lows. It’s all part of sports, a reflection of life. Yes, it is fun to go down memory lane. 2015 has arrived as we await many more thrills and spills. Enjoy the ride!
From the Quote Rack:
Chicago’s Starlin Castro was questioned by Dominican Republic police in connection with a shooting at a nightclub, after the Cubs shortstop was questioned earlier for ANOTHER nightclub shooting. Who does Castro think he is, an NFL player?
Apparently a contributing factor for Josh Gordon’s suspension, was a party Johnny Manziel threw. (Gordon was then AWOL for the team’s Saturday walk-through.) Who says Johnny Football isn’t a leader already?
Contributor Janice Hough of Palo Alto, California www.leftcoastsportsbabe.com
Johnny Boyziel was out late running up a $1,000 bar tab last week. He paid his tab with winnings from an amusement game there. The patrons and staff now refer to him as Johnny Foosball.
Attention Seahawk Fans: The 3 wise men mentioned this time of year are not Richard Sherman, Marshawn Lynch and a cardboard cut-out.
Comedy writer TC Chong of Vancouver (http://alwaysfunny.com/)
Ndamakong Suh reportedly said that his feet were numb and that he didn’t know that he was stepping on Aaron Rodgers. So I guess we call the incident ‘Numb and Numb-er.’
An unnamed senator’s response to President Obama’s normalization of relations with Cuba–‘I predict that the next major expansion of the Pac 12 will include the University of California at Havana.’
Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California
And in case you missed it:
Three reasons a South Carolina horse threw a bride to the ground while she was posing on it in her wedding dress: 3. It sensed nagging doubts; 2. To leave her at the halter; 1. Bride cometh before a fall.
Comedy writer RJ Currie www.Sportsdeke.com
Hartley Miller is the sports director and morning news anchor for 94.3 the Goat. His column appears Fridays on hqprincegeorge.com. Send along a quote, note, or anecdote to [email protected]
Follow him on twitter: @Hartley_Miller